Besides the popular hit Mak Cun, Erma Fatima has other projects up her sleeves. Tahir Alhamzah finds out more
LOCAL entertainment heavyweight Erma Fatima feels that it is her social responsibility to sometimes inject a message in her work.
In August, she will be staging and directing a theatre production entitled Malayu.
“Right now, I’m in the midst of improving the script,” says Erma, who is also the playwright for the production.
The show is expected to enjoy a 10-day run at Istana Budaya in Kuala Lumpur.
Erma says the story is about an imaginary country called Malayu, where its population is extremely spoilt by its loving king, so much so that his subjects have turned into an ungrateful lot.
All they ever do is make demands and their wishes are easily granted by their king. Little do the people know that their country’s economy is propelled by foreign powers, who have a hidden agenda, driven by greed.
Sounding like a political allegory of sorts, the 47-year-old actress and director is quick to add that this story is not at all about Malaysia.
“But I wrote it with a message for all of us. I want to make everyone realise that whatever happens to Malayu, can also happen to our country.
“It’s a simple clarion call to always strive for self-improvement and to realise that there is always room for improvement as well. Once we realise that, we should get ourselves into the act immediately,” says the artiste, who has recently turned entrepreneur.
The cast members include Afdlin Shauki, Erra Fazira and Syanie Hisyam, and rehearsals will begin later this month.
MAK CUN SPINOFFS
Undoubtedly, Mak Cun is one of her succesful productions. With the second season of the TV drama series has just ended its run, Erma has already started preparing for its third, with filming to begin in October.
Its theatre production, Mak Cun The Musical, which was staged at Istana Budaya for nine days in November last year, will make a return with a new script. It is set for a November run.
Realising how huge the Mak Cun brand has become, besides coming out with Mak Cun animation series for the small screen, Erma is looking at expanding it to comics.
“Both are targeted for a release at the end of next year, as we are still in the process of finalising the caricature for the characters. I want to ensure that we come out with the best,” she says.
For the uninitiated, the character Mak Cun is a middle-aged woman from a rural area who sells bedak sejuk (a traditional Malay face powder made from rice).
A case of life imitating art, Erma who plays the titular role, has since become a business woman herself.
Together with her sister, award-winning actress Datin Umie Aida, the sisters first started selling the bedak sejuk under the Mak Cun label online a few months ago, which then led to various other business ventures.
While Umie is now adding on a diet drink to her list of products, Erma is selling a range of clothing under Mak Cun brand and food products from soya sauce to spices to frozen roti canai, which are available at Tesco Mutiara Damansara in Petaling Jaya.
“It all started when I was shooting a scene at a trade expo in Dubai. The Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) was gracious enough to let us set up a booth for our make-believe products by Mak Cun,” she recalls.
“Suddenly, there was this Arab delegation who approached the booth. They made inquiries about our products and wanted to put an order for our packed spices.”
Erma plans to make her Mak Cun food products available for wider distribution next month.
“My ultimate target for Mak Cun brand is to come up with Mak Cun Malay Mart, a retail outlet,” says Erma of her dream.